Cantlay gains exemption into '12 British Open

Patrick Cantlay during the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur.

Patrick Cantlay during the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur.

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HP Byron Nelson Championship

Irving, TX - TPC Four Seasons Resort

11:35:50 AM ET. 05/20/2013




PosNameTodayThruScore
1Sang-Moon Bae-1F-13
2Keegan Bradley+2F-11
3Charl Schwartzel-2F-10
4Justin Bolli-5F-9
T5Morgan Hoffmann-4F-8
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Men's Rankings »

RankNameSchoolRating
1Michael KimCalifornia  69.10 
2Brandon StoneTexas  69.45 
3Bobby WyattAlabama  69.52 
4Cory WhitsettAlabama  69.60 
5Julien BrunTCU  69.60 

Men's Team Rankings »

RankNameRatingEvents
1California 69.32  13 
2Alabama 69.63  11 
3Texas 70.34  11 
4UCLA 70.36  12 
5New Mexico 70.50  13 

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — UCLA sophomore Patrick Cantlay is going to the Open Championship under a new qualifying category for golf’s oldest championship.

The R&A said Wednesday that the winner of the McCormack Medal as the No. 1 player in the world amateur golf ranking at the end of the amateur season earns an automatic spot in the Open Championship. That change is effective for 2012, when the Open will be played at Royal Lytham & St. Annes.

Cantlay, the low amateur at the U.S. Open and runner-up at the U.S. Amateur, won the McCormack Medal this year as the top-ranked amateur. He already has earned exemptions to the Masters and the U.S. Open in 2012 for reaching the championship match at the U.S. Amateur.

Cantlay, of Los Alamitos, Calif., was Golfweek's College Player of the Year as a freshman.